The San Francisco 49ers offense lines up against the Atlanta Falcons at Candlestick Park on October 11, 2009 in San Francisco. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – John Madden thinks the 49ers will win Sunday’s NFC Championship game against the Falcons in Atlanta, but doesn’t expect a cake walk.

“You’re taking how they played last week and exploded and you’re carrying it over to this week, (but) it’s going to be tougher for them,” Madden told the KCBS morning crew. “Last week they were at home, and you can do a lot of things offensively at home that you can’t do on the road. A lot of that is audibles, cadence, communication at the line of scrimmage. So being on the road in a dome is going to be a new hurdle they have to get over.”

Can the 49ers stop Atlanta’s strong passing game?

“The thing that I’ve always found that really helps those situations in stopping those great outside receivers and a great tight end is a big pass rush,” Madden said. “There’s no quarterback in the world that likes to get knocked down, and there’s no quarterback in the world that’s ever played that can throw the ball from that position… That’s going to be the key.”

John said the quarterback gets most of the attention, but the 49ers excel in other areas.

“They’re the best tackling defense in the NFL,” Madden said. “Their offensive line, I think, is the best offensive line in football, and (running back) Frank Gore is a workhorse. There are a lot of pretty good parts there before you even get to the quarterback.” (7:55).

Daily Madden

(Listen to the John Madden segment live weekday mornings at 8:15 on KCBS All News 740 AM/106.9 FM. And catch John’s extra report at 9:15 a.m. Mondays and Fridays through the NFL playoffs and Super Bowl.)

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John Madden

John Madden began his pro football coaching career in 1967 as the Oakland Raiders' linebackers coach. After two seasons, he was elevated to head coach. At 32 years of age when he was hired, he became the youngest head coach in the American Footba...